Headlight Problem, Geo metro

[rmjake]

Headlight Problem, Geo Metro;
One Headlight is Bright, the Other Dim. When I unplug either light, the other one goes out. There is a single headlamp relay in the relay panel, for both headlights, so I assume that the on/off switch on the steering wheel blinker is not a problem. There is a R/W wire going to the outside terminal of each headlamp. There is also a red (R) wire going to the other outside terminal of each headlamp headlamp. The middle wire terminals are different in color. W/BL, left headlamp, and W/R right headlamp. So, I assume that these two wires go to different areas, but I don't know where. I found a schematic in the local library, and it shows that the common wires (R and R/W) go to one area of the fuse block and the two un-common wires (W/BL, left headlamp, and W/R right headlamp) go to a different area in same fuse block. I cannot tell where they go inside the fuse block, and beyond that, the schematic is not complete enough. I read the correct voltage on the left side headlamp terminals, but only about half that on the right side lamp terminals. I assume that this is the crux of the problem, but can't figure out why. Can anyone enlighten me? Is there anything else I can try? Why does the other lamp go when I inplug the first? I would think that the lamps would be in parallel. If one lamp burns out, the other should continue to burn. looks like a safety problem. Is there a grounding problem? I assume that the W/B and W/R wires eventually get to ground, but don't know why they would go to the fuse block first.
Regards, Ron Jacobson
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[geozukigti]

Just as a thought, try grounding the W/Bl wire from the left headlamp and the W/R wire from the right headlamp to the frame, and make them a common ground. I'd assume if those 2 wires eventually ground, they make a complete circuit, so if you ground them both to the frame, they'll both work. Just a guess tho. Worth a shot.

[rmjake]

Geozukigti'
I tried grounding both right and left wires that were uncommon, and no help. There was only about 1 volt difference between the wire, and ground, but the same voltage on both wires.
Ron

[geozukigti]

my next step would be to replace the sockets the lights plug into. You can buy better sockets at autozone or pepboys. Maybe the socket is fried.

[sixseas]

Hi I had a problem with the headlights on my 1994 Geo XFI. I I found a corroded connector and thought I solved the problem.

The headlights are connected on separate circuits so only one will fail at a time.

One night around 11pm on I-70 100 miles from the nearest town in Utah both headlights went out. I sat along the dark highway for hours looking for the problem with a flashlight and finally at 2am found the plug from the from the bright/dim switch to the fuse box was very slightly loose. The next morning I bought a plastic tiedown and secured the plug to the fusebox.

I would first look at this plug, when I jiggled it I lost or had dim headlights. If you get any variation in the headlights by wiggling the plug strapping it in placed solved the problem on mine. Good luck.